Cryptic crossword clue
Reported attempt by commercial gang of criminals 5

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word TRIAD

I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
T
R
I
A
D


Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "gang of criminals" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case gang of criminals = triad.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

What does TRIAD mean?

TRIAD noun
  1. A grouping of three.
  2. A word of three syllables.
  3. A branch of a Chinese underground criminal society, mostly based in Hong Kong.
  4. On a CRT display, a group of three neighbouring phosphor dots, coloured green, red, and blue.
  5. A chord consisting of a root tone, the tone two degrees higher, and the tone four degrees higher in a given scale.

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